Chapter 39 (The last part, "Staking Out," appears to be a fragment and doesn't translate directly. It's essentially a collection of unrelated phrases and sentences.)
"That was amazing!" Zhao Yun exclaimed from the bottom of her heart.
Her heart was still pounding, unable to shake the shock of the mysterious sixth man's swift and decisive handling of the zombies.
After calming down a bit, Zhao Yun dragged the progress bar, preparing to watch it again, when she suddenly felt something was wrong.
She turned around and was terrified by the face right behind her.
Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be my roommate who had always claimed to be uninterested in these kinds of videos.
Zhao Yun's roommate, her eyes glued to her computer screen, noticed her stop and urged, "Didn't you want to watch it again? Why did you stop?"
Zhao Yun: "...When did you get here?"
"It was when the zombie chase started." My roommate chuckled. "I have to say, it was quite interesting. The last scene was so cool."
"By the way, what was the name of this account you mentioned before? I'll follow it too."
As a self-proclaimed "face-value enthusiast," she was completely captivated by the last two seconds of the video.
...
The logic of the internet is that as long as you excel at one thing or are unique enough, you can attract a lot of attention.
It's like someone making all sorts of bizarre inventions that are clearly difficult to apply to real-world scenarios, yet they become excellent video material. This is because they embody the selling points of the internet: unique enough, interesting enough, and useless and boring enough.
This same traffic-driving principle applies to promotional videos as well.
Their previous video made it to the homepage recommendation because the idea of "surviving in a dormitory in a peaceful era without a zombie outbreak" was novel and creative, unprecedented and unparalleled. The reason for the viral success of this video is even simpler.
Because the zombies were realistic enough, and because Fu Qing's appearance was cool enough.
The five members of the publicity team thought that the previous video, which was also the fifth video that made them go viral and gain followers, was the peak they could reach in a short period of time.
What they need to do next is gradually build up their fan base.
Unexpectedly, the release of the new video caused their number of followers to double overnight, even more dramatically than the previous increase!
This time, the video's audience is no longer just young people who love watching funny videos, but also tech geeks who love to study, horror movie lovers, and fans of the "mysterious sixth man's" looks.
Three groups with completely different tastes met in a wonderful way in the same video.
In the comments section, some people are busy saying "ahhh," while others are busy saying "hahaha."
Some people are analyzing whether the zombie is a robot, a special effect, or a real person in a suit. Others are appreciating the filming techniques of the chase scene frame by frame, as well as studying the makeup techniques used to depict the zombie's rotting flesh. It's a diverse range of opinions.
Many people sent private messages asking about the truth behind the realistic zombies, but Sun Wei and others did not reply to any of them.
The current level of discussion is precisely what Fu Qingfa aimed to achieve by posting this video.
By exploiting loopholes in the system rules and the characteristics of realistic zombies, they can lure out those with ulterior motives.
...
In the underground parking lot, Fu Qing sat in her newly bought car, glanced at the lively comments section on her phone one last time, and then turned off the screen.
The vehicle navigation system pointed to a small courtyard in the suburbs.
This is a vacant property that Fu Qing acquired through a system transaction by exchanging part of his tuition fees.
The fact that the system could acquire such a large piece of land as Fangzhou in this world for building a school indicates that it has a certain power to influence reality. Purchasing a house through the system is the simplest and quickest way, and it can also effectively hide the source and owner information to avoid being traced.
However, unlike in Fangzhou, buildings cannot be constructed here; Fu Qing only obtained the right to use the courtyard.
The video was filmed in this small courtyard.
The house contains furniture left by the previous owner. The huge room has been vacant for so many years for some reason. Cobwebs and dust are readily available, so there's no need to bother with haunted house decorations.
The furniture wasn't worth much. After Fu Qing brought the propaganda team there, he waved his hand and gave them permission to do whatever they wanted, even demolish the house.
That's how the chaotic, unrestrained video content came about.
Meanwhile, Fu Qing had several tents and supplies he had bought but hadn't had time to pack in the trunk.
She will most likely spend the night in the courtyard tonight.
Before editing that video, Fu Qing deliberately reminded the boy in charge of post-production to remember to blur the road signs along the way, but not to blur the terrain near the courtyard too cleanly.
This makes finding filming locations much more difficult, but not to the point of being impossible. It effectively filters out some "fans" who are bored and want to pry into the blogger's privacy but lack the technical skills, leaving only those who are truly resourceful and have ulterior motives.
Fu Qing and the police both believe that Liu Yong most likely contacted other zombie followers online. The fact that that group was able to evade the initial search by the cyber police indicates that there must be someone among them who is very proficient in using the internet, making it not difficult for them to find this small courtyard.
Because of the cover-up, they would mostly assume that Fu Qing and the others were just being careless, and would not have thought that this was a trap from the very beginning.
With no clues about the believers, she had to create them herself.
Using sufficiently realistic zombies in the video and filming the killing scenes from the zombie's first-person perspective are all intended to provoke those hiding in the shadows.
The video was posted on Fangzhou's campus, so the IP address cannot be tracked; all they can find is this small courtyard.
All the other members who appeared on camera wore masks that covered their entire faces, but Fu Qing wore a gas mask that covered half of her face, making her recognizable by her eyebrows, eyes, and hairstyle.
If the six of them travel together, she's probably the only one who will be recognized.
Fu Qing has absolute confidence that he can withdraw unscathed.
Having ruled out all risks, she estimated the time it would take for them to find the courtyard based on the speed of the video's spread, and chose to stake it out alone tonight.
【alone】
—That was Fu Qing's original plan.
As she emerged from the underground parking garage and turned the steering wheel, she saw the propaganda team F5, neatly crouching on the ground at the school gate like five gatekeeper stone pillars.
Fu Qing: "..."
All five of them were still waiting at the door, no one knew how long they had been waiting.
When they saw Fu Qing's car stop, they quickly jumped up, but their legs went numb from squatting for so long that they all grimaced in pain.
Freckles: "Who suggested squatting down to wait?"
Sun Wei: "Hiss... I want to know too."
Su Huaijin, as the official spokesperson, was the first to walk over.
As she walked, her lips moved slightly, as if she were reviewing a prepared speech, before she mustered the courage to say to Fu Qing, "Principal, do you want to go to that courtyard? We want to go too."
Fu Qing lowered the car window halfway, rested her elbow on the steering wheel, and instead of directly objecting, asked, "Why?"
If it had been a former school leader who said those words, Su Huaijin would have apologized without hesitation and abandoned his idea.
Because the rhetorical questions uttered by adults often conceal rejection or even blame.
It's not a question, but a test of "whether you have any sense of propriety".
But Fu Qing's question was really just a question.
This means she gave herself a chance to convince herself.
Su Huaijin wasn't afraid. Instead, he used the question to reorganize his words, took a deep breath, and became much calmer in expression and tone before saying, "You didn't interfere with the content creation of the previous videos, so we have reason to suspect, no, believe, that this video has a special purpose."
This is a question she has been pondering ever since she started getting involved in the video scripts.
Judging from Su Huaijin's secret observations of the principal, she has always been a person who hates trouble and only appears on necessary occasions to do necessary things. Therefore, this video must be very important.
So, what would the principal's purpose be?
She attempted to analyze what made this video different from her previous ones:
"First, the filming location changed to off-campus. Second, props from within the school were used, while realistic zombies could not previously be filmed and uploaded to external networks, indicating that you deliberately changed the terms. Third, for the first time, someone in the footage showed their facial skin, although only half of their face."
Su Huaijin couldn't figure out the reason for the second point, but the first and third points clearly showed that the principal had deliberately revealed some private information.
When Su Huaijin inadvertently glanced at the comments section and saw someone trying to analyze which school the "survival team" came from based on the surrounding greenery and road features, she suddenly guessed the principal's purpose.
Perhaps someone wanted to harm the school, and the principal was afraid that they would find Fang Zhou and threaten the students' safety, so he wanted to lead them to that small courtyard in the suburbs.
If we compare the teachers and students of Fangzhou to the protagonist group who save the world, then it's normal for a few villains to oppose them, isn't it?
“If you really want to go to the courtyard, take us with you and pretend that you are filming a video. They will be more likely to take the bait.” Su Huaijin had even come up with an excuse to persuade Fu Qing to take him along. “After all, that house looks like no one lives there and it’s only used for filming. If you go there alone and stay there for a long time, they might realize it’s a trap.”
Fu Qing pondered: "Did you figure this out yourself?"
Su Huaijin nodded.
"You called them over too?"
Su Huaijin nodded again.
Fu Qing further raised his evaluation of Su Huaijin based on her excellent intelligence analysis and leadership skills. As for the remaining four, despite being informed of potential danger, they all arrived without exception.
The members of the publicity team felt the principal's gaze sweep over them quickly, and they straightened their chests involuntarily.
I heard the sound of the car door unlocking.
"Get in the car," Fu Qing said.
Everyone was overjoyed, fearing she might change her mind, and quickly got into the car.
To make it easier to stock up on goods, Fuqing bought an SUV with a spacious cabin that could comfortably seat five people.
They quickly found their seats and the vehicle started moving.
Fu Qing habitually rolled up her sleeves while driving, and Su Huaijin stared blankly at her driving back.
She didn't expect that the principal would actually agree to let them go with him.
Although she had indeed come up with a reason and thought the principal would most likely be willing to listen, Su Huaijin was not confident that she could actually persuade the principal.
Even among Fangzhou's students, probably only a small number realized that the person who arrogantly declared at the opening ceremony, "If I tell you to get out, you have to get out," was actually communicating with the students on an equal footing in private.
"Which one is the real her?" she couldn't help but mutter to herself.
She was some distance from the driver's seat, so Fu Qing didn't hear it, but the others in the carriage did.
After Su Huaijin explained, everyone silently reflected on their past stereotypes about the principal.
In the quiet carriage, the girl studying broadcasting and hosting spoke softly, her voice low and melancholic: "Is it possible—and I mean, is it possible—that equal communication is real, but it's also possible that if you don't study hard, you'll be kicked out?"
Su Huaijin: "..."
What is this, the principal's wave-particle duality?
She patted her chest with relief: "Luckily, I'm a top student."
As soon as he finished speaking, the top student surnamed Su earned a carload of angry glares.
*
To avoid being associated with Fangzhou, Fu Qing had the system find an abandoned courtyard in an extremely remote location, completely in the opposite direction from Fangzhou University's campus, which was originally located on the outskirts of S City.
Instead of taking the shortest straight route across the city, she took a detour via side roads, almost ending up in the mountains. Luckily, Fu Qing was a good driver, otherwise the bumpy ride would have made all five of them vomit.
It took nearly two hours to reach our destination, and by then it was completely dark.
This place was completely far from the city, with only a lone streetlamp standing not far away. The nearby residents were all asleep early, and the surroundings were eerily quiet. As Sun Wei got out of the car, it suddenly occurred to her that this was truly a perfect place to kill and dispose of a body.
No, no, this idea is too terrible.
Sun Wei quickly dismissed the thought and secretly moved closer to the principal's back.
With the principal around, it's like having a stabilizing force; it feels like there's nothing to fear.
Fu Qing opened the trunk, gesturing for the others to take their things inside.
Tent, sleeping bags, canned food, compressed biscuits, and a case of bottled water—enough for six people to keep watch here for the night.
After Fu Qing parked the car and entered the house, the pile of things was already stacked on the living room floor. The remaining five people stared at her expectantly, not knowing what to do.
Fu Qing sighed, wondering why she felt like she was taking care of a child.
She pointed to the tent bag: "You should have been taught how to set it up in the stockpiling class. Perfect, let's practice it. I'll keep an eye on it."
Although the course is titled "Stockpiling," it actually covers many different aspects beyond stockpiling techniques. These include the nutrition needed for survival and how to obtain it, how to store food resources, how to handle emergencies (such as medications for different illnesses, first aid for cuts, diarrhea, etc.), and how to use common survival supplies such as tents and generators.
According to Fu Qing, it's more like a "survival course," using stockpiling as a starting point. The subsequent course content is actually quite broad, and although not in-depth, it's enough for ordinary people to cope with most emergencies they might encounter while staying at home.
It is absolutely essential basic general education course in survival school.
The five people were stunned when they heard Fu Qing's words.
They thought the next step would be to find weapons, arrange tactics, and then lie in ambush. In short, it would be a very serious and formal combat preparation... But how did it suddenly turn into an after-school practice?
Do you have to squeeze in homework even when you're on a dangerous mission while traveling with the principal?
No one reacted in time, and no one moved. Fu Qing raised an eyebrow: "Do I have to teach you how to set up a tent?"
She looked like she was about to check everyone's report cards for the hoarding course any second now.
The group of people were startled and hurriedly bent down to unpack their luggage.
A moment later, Su Huaijin cautiously looked up: "Principal, there are two tents, how should we divide them?"
“Two people per group, and the other person keeps a stopwatch,” Fu Qing said casually.
She even figured out the format of the assessment!
The five were on the verge of tears, finally realizing that the principal was not joking.
After they all got busy, Fu Qing went for a walk around upstairs and downstairs.
The lock on the courtyard door had long been rusty and offered no real protection against theft. Before leaving last time, Fu Qing had put a straw ring on the lock, so that if anyone opened the door, the straw ring would break off without attracting any attention.
She had noticed this when she opened the door; the grass ring was still in the same spot.
The dust inside the room remained exactly as it had been after the last shoot, which corroborates the fact that no one had been there during that time.
Those people haven't arrived yet.
As for whether the believers will definitely see this video and follow the clues to this place, Fu Qing wouldn't say he's 100% sure, but he's about 70-80% certain.
It wasn't just because of her provocation, but also because the account @DormitoryBattle had explicitly made a "prediction" that the apocalypse would occur in about a year.
To uninformed netizens, this is just a hypothesis, but to zombie believers, it is a true prophecy.
They certainly won't let this hidden danger go unpunished; at the very least, they need to find out whether the survival team actually knows something or just stumbled upon the correct time by accident.
Furthermore, Fu Qing has yet to have the publicity team clarify that the simulated zombie is just a "dummy," precisely to mislead them into believing that it is likely a real zombie that was killed during the video shoot.
Because the simulated zombies were so realistic, so realistic that Bai Tang, who had come into contact with them, would be so frightened that she would lose her mind on the spot, forget that the apocalypse had not yet begun, and forget that the environment she was in was actually very safe.
If Bai Tang, as a victim, felt this way, what would those who believe in zombies and think they are the evolved species think?
Fu Qing was gambling, but also testing the waters, trying to gauge the extent of the other party's understanding of zombies.
As she pondered, she walked around in circles, dismantling two chairs along the way, removing their wooden legs, and then carrying the weapons she had just acquired downstairs.
After all that work was done, the five people downstairs were still busy. The tent was only half-set up, and they were already covered in dust and dirt. Even the most meticulous Sun Wei looked like a city puppy that had just returned to the village after the New Year and had been rummaging around in the fields, looking all dusty and dirty.
Fu Qing realized that none of the five people in the propaganda team had much work experience.
Considering that the reason she gathered them was that all five of them were very good at things online, Fu Qing reluctantly forgave their clumsiness.
She half-squatted down next to Su Huaijin and pulled off a lock that the latter had just fastened incorrectly: "It's upside down, this one should be fastened to the outer bar."
"Where did this murder weapon come from? The pole head is sticking straight up to the sky... See that hole? It's stuck inside."
"The tent's support poles should cross, not be parallel. Didn't Bai Tang mention that? What was she talking about in class? Her love-hate relationship with her manipulative boyfriend?"
The group of five: "..."
With Fu Qing's help, he sorted out the chaotic scene in less than three minutes, set up two tents, and even corrected their various minor mistakes.
Multi-threaded operation, nothing was delayed.
Of course, the rants didn't stop either.
The group of five listened, sweating profusely.
Suddenly I realized that it's not such a bad thing that the principal doesn't teach classes. It feels like in her class, even the smallest problem would be pointed out, and she would just look at you and list your mistakes, which would make you feel ashamed to death.
but……
Looking at the two perfectly set tents standing in the living room, they realized they had memorized the setup process.
Ignoring the numerous errors that were pointed out and corrected one by one, everyone suddenly realized that setting up a tent wasn't so difficult after all.
Fu Qing glanced at the five people and decided to go back and purchase a batch of supplies for classroom practice.
The rest of the room was dusty and unusable, but luckily the living room was big enough to fit the two tents. They opened the tent flaps and sat inside. Some people even spread leftover packaging bags on the ground and sat down. Finally, everyone had a place to sit.
Then, I didn't know what to do next.
Su Huaijin glanced at Fu Qing cautiously, and Fu Qing understood, uttering a single word: "Wait."
"Are we just going to wait like this?" Freckled asked.
For a couple of seconds, before the principal could answer, Su Huaijin suddenly had a flash of inspiration and miraculously realized the answer.
"No!" she said firmly, "How can we waste such precious time!"
The other four: ?
Su Huaijin: "We can do our homework!"
The four people looked shocked: "???"
The appearance of the King of Roll completely ruined the serious, earnest, and formal atmosphere of this dangerous operation.
Half a minute later, the remaining four students, along with the suddenly enthusiastic Su Huaijin, began to do their homework in a daze.
Fu Qing glanced at the group, smiled faintly, and turned to look out the window.
Dark clouds obscure the moonlight; it will rain tonight.
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